1999 November 5, Friday, Trip to St Louis Mo

My husband and I rode to Saint Louis so he could sign the IBEW book for a job, and while we were there, we visited the 630-foot Gateway Arch.
The Arch is clad in stainless steel and built in the form of an inverted weighted catenary arch.

St Louis Arch and Park 

St Louis Arch 

We walked to the Gateway Arch, a stainless steel structure 630 feet high with a 60-foot foundation and a catenary curve swaying in a half-inch 20 mph wind. 

We rode the two-passenger tram to the observation room at the top of the Museum.  

We could hear the tram's click, click as we ascended to the top of the Arch.

From the observation room, we could see The Old Courthouse, 11 N. Fourth St, & The Bush Stadium 250 Stadium Plaza, where the St. Louis Cardinals play, & the American Center and Dome Stadium 701 Convention Plaza, north of downtown, east of I-70, where the St. Louis Rams football team plays. 

Downtown St Louis 

The Old Courthouse

Bush Stadium 

To the East, we son tSt. St Lo, IL, the Noise Casino, the McDonald's floating restaurant, & the Admiral Casino floating on the Mississippi River.

Admiral Casino 

Floating Casinos and McDonald's on the mighty Mississippi River 

I took several pictures, but we did not stay too long because I could feel the Arch swaying, which made me feel sick.

So we once again loaded into the small, enclosed tram and went click, click, click back down to the lobby.

In the basement of the Arch, we visited the Levee Mercantile General Store and the visitor center. 

IBEW Worker installing Christmas Lights. 

We walked past the IBEW workers putting up the Christmas Lights around the Brewery.
The entrance to the historic architecture of Anheuser-Busch Brewery is located at 12th and Lynch Streets.

A group of students graduated in 200,0, entering Anheuser-Busch Brewery.

Historic Brewery House built in 1892 

Petting the Anheuser-Busch Dalmatian.

We met Wallace and Brookdal, the two Anheuser-Busch Clydesdales.leAnheuser-Busch

Bush horse harness

The address for the Brewery is 1127 Pestalozzi Street, not the touring entrance.
We entered the Brewery with a group of students who will graduate in 2000.
Once inside the Brewery, we saw the Clydesdale and their stables.
We were greeted by a friendly bark and the wagging tail of the Anheuser-Busch Dalmatian.
We were guided through the bottling and beer-making (Brewery) areas.

Once inside the Brewery, we were not allowed to take pictures.
Our tour ended in the tasting room, where we were given two samples of tap beer.

Posing in front of the Budweiser Big Red Wagon

Our final stop was the Budweiser Clydesdale that was outside grazing.

Clydesdale grazing. 

We had a full day with signing the books at Local #1.
Take the tram up to the top of the Arch to view St. Louis from bon the east and west sides.
Walking through the Anheuser-Busch Brewery, sampling the beer on tap, petting the Dalmatian dog, and viewing the Clydesdale.
It was getting late, and we still had a six-hour ride home.
This would be one of our many adventures in St Louis.

🚗2000 ~July 14-17, Trip to St Louis, Missouri

Day 1: Friday, July 14, 2000 

On Friday, July 14, I drove from Illinois to Saint Louis, Missouri, with my granddaughter.

It took us around six hours. My husband said, "When you arrive in Fenton, look for the pink elephant."
We hadn't traveled far enough to see the elephant, so I called my husband on a payphone and asked, "We're in Fenton. Where do I go next?"
I was just a few miles from where he was living, but the directions he gave me had me going in circles.
So I called him back, and he met me at the gas station where I called him from. I followed him to the RV park with no problem, and I never saw a Pink elephant.

Day 2: Saturday, July 15, 2000

It was time to get the oil changed in my husband's Saturn, so my granddaughter and I went with him to Saturn of South County, located at 11157 Lindberg Business Ct, St. Louis, Missouri.
While sitting in the lobby waiting for my oil change, I saw a beautiful black Saturn in the showcase and fell in love with it.
I asked the salesperson, Lin, if I could test drive the Satu, and she went to get the keys.
I traded my Firebird for a Blackberry LS1Saturn.
I signed all the paperwork, but I couldn't officially take the car back home until Monday because I needed to order the title from the bank.

Later that day, we went to the St. Louis Arch, but we did not take the elevator to the top.
We visited the Museum of Westward Expansion, which took us on a journey into the past, where we saw tools, guns, animals, and wagons used by explorers, pioneers, cowboys, and Native Americans. 

St Louis Arch

There were animated figures that told the story of Peace Medal diplomacy in the US during the nineteenth century with William Clark, Red Cloud, Chief Oglala, Sergeant Banks, & Charles Barber.

In the interactive Museum, we saw the life of the Cowboys.

We saw the Tipi Plains Indians, nomadic buffalo hunters.

We saw the sod house of the earlier pioneers.

We saw the Appaloosa, which was a symbol of transportation into the West.

We saw the longhorn steer cattle drive westward.

We saw the bison that was hunted and killed for food, clothing, and shelter.

We saw the bear, which was also crucial during the migration into the West.

For lunch, we ordered hamburgers, fries, and soda to drink from McDonald's.
McDonald's is located on the Missouri River aboard a boat, featuring a Ronald McDonald statue, smoke pipes, and the golden arch M on what appears to be a wheel.
We parked in the pier parking lot and walked down a ramp onto the boat. The boat was tied to the pier, and we could feel its movement as we sat and ate.

McDonald's Floating on the Missouri River 

Day 3: Sunday, July 16, 2000

On Sunday, we all visited Grant's Farm, the former home of the Bush Family —a 281-acre farm and landmark in Grant Wood Village, MO.
In the 1800s, Ulysses S. Grant farmed part of the land.
We paid $12 to park and were told we would have to stand in line to ride the tram to the farm.

We boarded the tram, which took about fifteen minutes. On the ride to the park, we saw Axis Deer, American Bison, Aoudads, Black Buck Antelope, Galloway, Highland Cows, Pere David Deer, Red Deer, Wapiti, Watusi, and Zebra.

When we disembarked from the tram, we walked to the Bauernhof, a German word for the farmstead, which was a nineteenth-century Bavarian farm, stables, and carriage house.

At the Brat Haus, they were serving Bratwurst, Pretzels, and Chicken Strips.

A Bauernhof

It was very hot andd when Hannah spotted themistt spray shecouldn't wait too getit too,e followed her.

Mist to cool off

Hannah is standing in the mist to cool off.

Hannah is next to the Carriage.

We are carrying next to the Carriage.

Caution: Horses might bite.

We stopped to see the corralled 35 mares, stallions, and Folds Clydesdales. Clydesdales are 188 feet high and weigh 2,000 to 2,300 pounds. They are bay in color, with a blaze of white faces; they have a black mane and tail. Their legs and feet are covered in white feathers on all four limbs.

Hannah at Grants Farm 

Camels at Grants Farm 

Day 4: Monday, July 17, 2000
On Monday, I finalized the paperwork on my new Saturn so I could drive it home for six hours.

My granddaughter and I had a great trip. We toured the St. Louis Arch, visited Grant's Farm, ate lunch on the Floating McDonald's, and I bought a Saturn.

2006 ~ August 21-23, Trip to St. Louis Children’s Hospital St Louis, Mo

Day 1: Monday, August 21, 2006 

A trip to St. Louis Missouri to take my granddaughter to Children’s Hospital in St Louis, Mo.

Before we left for St. Louis, I walked two miles today, washed my clothes, and went to my daughter's house. 

My daughter and I packed the car, we went to the bank to get some cash for our trip, and we went to get the car washed. 

We were on the road at about 2:30 P.M. 

I drove through Savannah, to Dyersburg to Interstate 55. 

We stopped at a filling station just off the Interstate to fill up with gas, change the baby's diaper, purchase some medicine for my daughter's headache, and swap drivers. 

For lunch, we stopped at Cracker Barrel in Cape Girardeau, where I ordered a children's plate of corn, pinto beans, cornbread, and iced tea. My daughter also ordered a children's plate of pinto beans and chicken and dumplings which she shared with my granddaughter.

Cape Girardeau is about two hours away from St. Louis. 

We arrived at Heaven House at about 8:00 p.m. and were given a tour of the Haven House.

The Haven House has four wings, each wing has its own kitchen, its own living room, and its own play area.
Our room has two, & a half beds and a crib for Meadow.

The Haven House St Louis

My granddaughter at the Haven House in her jumper

Day 2: Tuesday, August 22, 2006

We stayed only one day and checked out the next morning at 10:00 A.M.
We went next door to Walgreens where we bought two small disposable cameras, a teething ring for my granddaughter, two bottles of water, and some baby wipes. 

My daughter drove us down I-270 to 64/40  to downtown St. Louis. 

We stopped at the Old Cathedral parking lot and walked to the arch.  

At the entrance to the Arch were security guards where everything was searched including
my granddaughter's stroller and she had to be taken out of the stroller.

The guards made us pour the water out of the water bottles that we had just bought and we had to open our purses for them to search.

The man behind us said, “I did not know I had so much junk in my pockets when he was asked to empty his pocket and then told the security guards, just wait until you see what is in my wife’s purse.
My brother-in-law said when I was a kid he lived in St. Louis and his elementary class each added a brick to the bottom of St. Louis Arch. Construction of the arch began in 1963 and was finished in 1965.
Inside the bottom of the arch we walked through the Western Expansion and shopped at the museum but we did not have time to go up inside the arch.

On the way to Children’s Hospital, Lora made a wrong turn, she turned onto the 64/40 highway toward Illinois instead of St. Louis.
We had to cross the bridge that leads us into St Louis, Illinois, Lora turned around and we were on our way to Children's Hospital. 

We finally, arrived at the Children’s Hospital, where my granddaughter will see Mary Bertrand, MD.

Mary focuses her practice on Pediatric Epilepsy.

The address is one Children’s Place Suite 2D St Louis, Missouri 63110, and her telephone # is 314-454-6120.
Children's Hospital St Louis BJC Health Care

We were taken to a room where my daughter talked to Mary, for what seemed like hours about my granddaughter's condition.

My granddaughter was admitted to the hospital for an EEG and an MRI. 

While they were getting my granddaughter ready for her EEG, my daughter and I walked downstairs for lunch. EEG-An electroencephalograph.

My granddaughter having an EEG

Several doctors & nurses came in to see my granddaughter one was a white pregnant woman an Asian doctor, several RNs, and an EEG Nurse. That night we slept in the hospital. 

Day 3: Wednesday, August 23, 2006

We slept until 7:30 a.m. the following day. 

My granddaughter was chipper after her breakfast, a bowel movement, and a nice bath and she is now playing.

My granddaughter's  MRI is at 10:00 A.M. today.
MRI -magnetic resonance imaging
MRI IMAGES

The nurses tried to get a drip started in my granddaughter's arm before her MRI but they were having a problem getting the needle in her veins.

My granddaughter started to scream with pain, which made me sick, and all I wanted to do was tell them to quit. 

I walked over to the window so I could not see what was happening because I was about to pass out.

My granddaughter did not have her MRI until after 3:00 p.m.
It was a fantastic view of St. Louis Arch and downtown St. Louis from my granddaughters' room.

My granddaughter was dismissed later that afternoon we started our six-hour ride home.